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Super 8 - An Amblin Entertainment Production, a J.J. Abrams Film (1 Viewer)

Mark Booth

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I absolutely LOVED it! A B-movie-like popcorn flick that is a little bit scary, a little bit funny, and a whole heck of a lot of fun! 5 out of 5 stars. A+++ It's a must-see. Don't wait for the home video release. Go see it in a theater with a big screen and a great sound system!


BTW, don't leave the theater too soon, there's a treat during the end credits!


Mark
 

TravisR

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I enjoyed the new X-Men movie quite a bit (to the point where I just assumed it would be my favorite summer movie this year) but Super 8 was even better. The 5 or 6 kid actors actually turn in real performances. Michael Giacchino's score channels John Williams in the best ways and writer/director Abrams does great in 1970's Spielberg mode. If you made movies or read monster magazines when you were a kid, I think you'll love this movie. Everyone who cries that Hollywood makes too many sequels, remakes and comic book adapatations, go see this! Even if you hate it, at least you supported something that isn't a franchise.
 

Robert Crawford

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I thought it was great too. I loved the young actors in it as I was totally entertained by this film.








Crawdaddy
 

Malcolm R

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I was also disappointed overall. It seems like they forgot to write an ending. No sooner do the kids make "first contact" than it's over.


The continuous lens flares were very distracting. Does anyone know why Abrams does this? He needs to stop being so self-indulgent with his style/flair and just tell the story. It doesn't add anything and just keeps pulling me out of the film.


Only about 12 people attending in a 450 seat theater. Could be a disappointing weekend for Super 8.
 

TravisR

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Malcolm R said:
Only about 12 people attending in a 450 seat theater. Could be a disappointing weekend for Super 8.
It was pretty empty in the theater too. I wonder why Hollywood keeps making sequels, remakes and adaptations? Oh, right because that's all that people are interested in.
 

Jose Martinez

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It's kinda like his signature just like John Woo has his "doves." Not distracted by it at all. I actually like it.

Originally Posted by Malcolm R

The continuous lens flares were very distracting. Does anyone know why Abrams does this? He needs to stop being so self-indulgent with his style/flair and just tell the story. It doesn't add anything and just keeps pulling me out of the film.
 

Mark Booth

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Saw 'Super 8' for the second time this afternoon. Loved it just as much as the first viewing.


BTW, #Super8Movie is the number one trending topic on Twitter. I seriously doubt that it's going to have a weak opening weekend.


I've contributed my share! :)


Mark
 

Adam Lenhardt

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Caught a 6:20 show tonight, and had to sit in the bottom (below the stadium seating section) because the top was packed. First time I've seen an usher employed as an usher in a long, long time. Fun movie that I liked a lot. Somehow, though, I think the whole was less than the sum of its parts. Elle Fanning's performance is the stand out. I think I would have been more interested in a movie without the monster, exploring how these two families are intertwined by this one tragedy. Joe and his father weren't fleshed out as much as I would have liked, even though Joel Courtney and Kyle Chandler did an excellent job with what they had to work with.
 

Sam Posten

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7:25 showing tonight and it was about half full. I asked the usher where the crowds were, the whole 12plex was empty.


Loved it till the last 10 minutes, very unsatisfying ending.


The train crash is one of my favorite sequences in any movie and the bus was up there too.


Definitely felt it was inspired heavily by ET, Close Encounters and Iron Giant. The kids really sold the movie, the female lead is a stunner.

I laughed at the blue damn lens flares from yellowish (sodium vapor???) train lights. Fricking JJ was just messing with us there.
 

Robert Crawford

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I agree the last ten minutes of the film were the weakest, but I still thought it was a good film. I used the word "great" earlier which I shouldn't have because it was a good film and an entertaining one, but not "great".
 

cafink

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark Booth

BTW, #Super8Movie is the number one trending topic on Twitter. I seriously doubt that it's going to have a weak opening weekend.



It's a "promoted" trending topic. The studio paid to have it show up on the list.
 

Patrick Sun

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I wanted to like this film, but after you get past the nostalgic look at 1979 (everything, the cars, the lack of smartphones, the use of super 8 film for childhood movie-making, etc), the film's storyline has a rather meandering focus due to it keeping the reveal of the thing in the train firmly underwraps until the last 1/3 of the film, and then it just never pays off in the end, except for some orchestrated sentimentality that isn't quite earned through the first 2/3 of the film, mainly the subplot between Joe and his father after his mother perished unexpectedly, and each trying to find a way to get past the heartache.


I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
 

Jose Martinez

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I liked it but wasn't in awe of it. The actors, especially Elle Fanning, were particularly good. It did have that 80's Speilberg feel to it but somehow lacking in terms of emotion. As for the monster, it did look like a mini-cloverfield.


I agree it may have done better as a non-summer release.
 

SWFF

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Like, Jose, I liked it but wasn't in awe of it. I was under the impression this was going to be THE summer movie. The one I was going to NEED on DVD. Well, wouldn't you know the movie Gods through me for a loop; it just wasn't THAT kind of movie. It's good, almost excellent, but not something I could watch more than that initial time.
 

Chris Will

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Well, I loved it, everything about it I loved. I don't understand the complaints about holding the reveal of the alien til the final act. The shark in Jaws wasn't revealed until the end and no one complains about that. Super 8 is seen mostly from the point of view of the kids and we didnt get a good look at it until they did, made sense to me. Was the ending as emotional as something like ET, no but, I thought it was a satisfying ending to the story. This just brought back a lot of great childhood memories and I can't wait to see it again and buy the BD. I'm not saying to was a perfect film or even on the same level of greatness of early Speilberg films but, it was a lot of fun to watch and it is one of the more enjoyable films of the year so far IMO. 4 out 5 stars for me! I also think this was one of Giacchino's best scores to date and I can't wait to buy the soundtrack (6/28).
 

DaveB

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Super-8 transported me back to some mysterious, half-remembered era of my youth. I had so much fun with this film, I was easily able to overlook its flaws and thoroughly enjoy the movie magic.


Loved it!
 

DustinPizarro

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Right of the bat I don't want to slam the movie for being bad because it really wasn't bad. The performances from the kids were great. The production really brought you back to the pre-Star Wars fandom of model kits & bikes. The end credits was an excellent creative touch. But...if I had been in my early teens then I probably would have loved this movie even more. At my age, I just had the "unfortunate" luck of having seen E.T., The Goonies and Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind, among others already mentioned. It brought nothing new considering the direction & production of Mr. Abrams & Speilberg or maybe because of it. Consider the following: a broken family, kids making a chance discovery, the mysterious government coverup, and even the obvious E.T ending. That makes it very difficult to judge Super 8 on its own merits. Again it was not a bad movie it was just done before...and a whole lot better.
 

Jose Martinez

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I wonder if DHARMA had anything to do with this. The industrial reel in the movie looked like something out of Lost.


:)
 

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